YMMB

Over the last few weeks had a few trips into YMMB, good to the a bit more flying activity. Seems to a fair bit of flying training both rotary and fixed wing going on compared to a few years ago when i last visited. I was having a wander around to fill in time as you do some things change yet other things haven't changed over the last 30 years; 1.No more mass departures at 4pm for Flinders Island Airline PA-31 carrying the newspapers upcountry- afternoon edition of The Herald,

2.Ron Roberton theory classrooms long gone,

3.Schutts Hangar no new Cessnas waiting to be assembled inside, the flying s school long gone old Schutty would turn in his grave,

4. Fred Blakes old office is still their, just no new shiny Pipers out the front. Remember parked up at the fence with the For Sale sign on the prop

5. John Corrells office for Correll Advanced Flight Trainingtaken over by some accountant

6. Australian Air Charterers/Ausair-no more PA-31 heading up to Tulla to do night freight,

7. Civil flying Services no longer in operation

8. No more 35 centre for IFR arrivals or departures-not recommended for the faint hearted

9. No more 3DB flying tadpole - younger generation will have to think about that,

10. Wandering back to my aircraft, I notice a young instructor and a student head off to pre-flight a Cessna C152, I wonder how many times that has happened over the years at YMMB.

11. The C172's used by the SEC for powerline inspections.

As we taxi we join the line of Pa-28 and Cessna taxing with eager students, a Seminole heading off for an IFR Navex , RFDS Kingair , a flash looking Jabiru even some of the call-signs sound familiar.

At least the "house of lies" aka the RVAC bar is still in operation, nothing like a cold beer or two after a hard day of studying those CPL theory subjects. Wasn't unusual in those days to be having a quiet ale on a Friday night and be joined by one or two of the local DCA/CAA guys for informal discussion on all things aviation, probably earned the regulator more respect than any bullshit dreamed by some idiot in Canberra!! Please take note Mr Byron and Mr Gibson. Some of the other operators that come to mind that have disappeared include:

Location: Hughes Point, where life is great! Was also resident on page 13, but now I'm lost in Cyberspace....

Age: 55

Posts: 3,488

You have brought back many memories of my days at Moorabbin Stationair!

I did my theory with Ron Robertson way back in 1986, there were 6 of us on the course, I often wonder what happened to the other 5! At lunch times we would wander around the airport poking our noses into hangars and aircraft along the flight line, no one ever asked what we were doing, it was the done thing back then.

I remember too the 3DB flying tadpole, it was no longer flying for the radio station at the time, but still wore the 3DB colours. It impressed me so much, I have dreamed of owning a 'twin seabee' since!

I remember the "Tadpole" very well! Unsure if it was 3DB one, but its certainly the Republic SeaBee. Its actually parked down at Tyabb in Hosking's hangar waiting to have its restoration finished. I think it only requires an engine, and wings to be put on.

The joys of being allowed to wander around an airport, without any form of ID, in and out of hangars, poking around the aircraft for sale, wandering in and out of flying schools to get the aircraft hire rates etc.

A number of the flying schools had B36, C210 and PA32r to hire out in the old days!!

Anyone remember the two D50 Twin Bonanza's that lived there in the 1970's, VH-CLM was one of them.

A couple of more companies that have gone:

1. Bassair had a Dove for freight down to King Island

2. Air Tasmania operated Bandeirantes KNQ & KNO

A big thank-you to Osama for cutting back my ability to wander around airports like YMMB

Location: Hughes Point, where life is great! Was also resident on page 13, but now I'm lost in Cyberspace....

Age: 55

Posts: 3,488

I haven't been to Moorabbin for about 5 years, but last time I was there the only thing that looked the same was the aircraft museum! Hadn't changed in twenty years...

Is it still there?

I also remember the Ingham Brothers making their twice weekly visit into Morabbin in VH-ING, still hear it getting around, although it has had several incarnations since and looks a little flasher now!

Stationair 8 it may very well have been me in that RFDS kingair at YMMB the other week, i've been in there a few times of late ! Damn waste of resource I reckon but that's another story Love going out of there near M/T back to EN VFR & climbing like a homesick angel !You can peg the vsi at around 4000 fpm

I like flying into there as long as the twr is open, if not & it's busy with traffic in the circuit it can be a real pain! I can recall back in the early 80's I hired a C210 TIZ for a boys trip to FLI. We got stuck on the Is for days due lousy wx (VFR in those days) & when I did manage to return to YMMB the wx was still RS! I slipped in via the eastern side of the airport (GMH, 118.1 twr I think) & then had to after much cloud dodging proceed via carum but still had in my mind from ATIS that I was to land on rwy 31R (118.1 told me to stay with them, one piece of swiss cheese lined up !)...........you guessed it landed on 31R (eastern side) purely 'cause it didn't occur to me (green pilot back then, trying to stay vis) that changing inbound reporting points made for a diff rwy....whooooooooopppppppppsssssss Twr guy was good (NO ESIR;s in those days) he simply said after I taxied off, take the next taxiway & ty for ldg on the wrong rwy!!!!, god how low can one feel !............oh well at least I learnt something that day, never to just 'assume'

hey HH I remember (lot of that going on here) doing an RNAV onto MB R17 at night with a med team aboard & had to make a missed app due not seeing "zip" at the Min...........odly enough heard an A/C taxing out for a practice NDB app !! I did mention on the CTAF that you may want to think twice about that & went over to ML Dep. Didn't know the outcome. Probably 'stationair8' trying to go home after all that reminiscing, sorry just kidding buddy

Howard, the twin Piaggio would a P-166 operated by Captain Jack Ellis. A legend in the aviation business! I think Forrestair operated a number of P166 on charter and freight work. The mighty "pig" a mans aeroplane, flown by men not some flaming FMS/GPS Autopilot. Had a real glass cockpit-glass in the windscreen and glass in those little flight instruments.

Cap'n Wally, sounds like if you had initially discussed Runway Right with the tower, and recieved no instruction otherwise, that it would be perfectly natural to land on the Right. And if the vis was that bad, surely the lights were on? (If i'm right in thinking its the two eastern runways that have the lights)